"We are fine, trying to work with PIH (Partners in Health) to help in any way that we can," wrote Dr. Lisbet Hanson. "Cange seems fairly calm and no major destruction here, though a lot of panic initially."

Water is a concern, she said.

"Cange is worried that they don't have enough fuel for the generator. The dam is down, there is no power so everything is running off the generator. The water purification system requires electricity to work. And there is only so much fuel. I have offered to scrub, hold retractors, donate blood, help in post op," she wrote.

Physicians for Peace provides medical education and training, rather than relief work, and has been working Haiti for years, particularly in rehabilitating trauma victims through its Walking Free program, Sconyers said.

To help the nation devastated by Tuesday's earthquake, Physicians for Peace has set up a fund. Donations can be made on the organization's Web site, physiciansforpeace.org.

Donations will go to two groups Physicians for Peace works with in Port-au-Prince — Healing Hands for Haiti and St. Vincent's School for Handicapped Children, Sconyers said.

Contributions will provide immediate trauma relief as well as longer term assistance for amputees. Sconyers imagines there will be a lot of work to do with trauma and amputee victims in the wake of the quake.

"We won't be going down there immediately," Sconyers said. "But we're positioning ourselves to go down there after the first responders."

Go to physiciansforpeace.org to donate or read updates on disaster-relief efforts from Physician for Peace partners in Haiti.